Alex Peak

2009/02/09:  Being Rorschach

Also available in .txt.

So, there I am, seeing the world through Rorschach’s eyes.  I wasn’t Rorschach directly, but rather I was Rorschach in the same way the various characters in Being John Malkovich were able to be John Malkovich.  In the film, they could see the world through his eyes, and perhaps even influence his actions somewhat, but they still had independent thoughts.

Well, there I am, seeing the world through Rorschach’s eyes.  I could manipulate his actions a bit, but I wasn’t him.

He saw someone kicking at a piece of equipment in a subway.  He grabs the woman, and holds her close to him.  She’s terrified.  He doesn’t harm her, he just holds her to scare her straight.  I make sure he lets go of her without harming her.

Nevertheless, she’s off running, and the cops are now after Rorschach.  (Seems to me that the cops should be after the woman who was kicking someone’s property, rather than Rorschach, who merely gave her a slight, mild punishment for her action.  But, they’re after Rorschach.)

Rorschach can’t really run, but he can jump, and when he does, he’s gliding through the air as though he were floating.  Somehow, however, friction slows him down, so he must constantly grab onto things that are hanging about to thrust himself forward.  I am doing the grabbing for him, as though he were a video game character.

I remember thinking this whole time that none of this was in the book.  Clearly, I must be living out the experience of the yet-to-be-released movie, then.

Rorschach is eventually caught.